Tegra X1

There was a time when Apple and Google were allies. The iPhone once used Google Maps as its default direction-finder and YouTube sat prominently on the homescreen. But that kind of harmony has fallen to the wayside as the Silicon Valley giants have become rivals on several fronts. They have competing Web browsers (Safari vs. Chrome) and smartphone operating systems (iOS vs. Android). In this epic tech battle, there’s a new front opening up — the third screen.

That’s how Ali Kani, general manager of Nvidia’s Shield division, describes this emerging space. The first display was the personal computer and that technology revolutionized the second display, which is mobile phone. Now, it is television’s turn to change with the help of the computer chip, and Apple and Google are both jockeying for position to offer the most attractive device. At Google IO, the company offered a fuller glimpse of what it is doing with Android TV. It’s going to push the platform on a wider array of products such as TVs and standalone devices.

Nvidia sees an opening in this fight for the living room. It already caters to a tech-savvy audience who has already cut the cord and streams content to TVs. With that in mind, the company known for making bleeding-edge graphics card has decided to make a device that not only satisfies users media-consuming needs, but also their gaming needs. That’s the thought behind the Nvidia Shield Android TV.Continue Reading →